the lost art of forming the family circle
“The room had been cleaned, the floor swept and beautiful rugs had been put down, rugs covered with flowers woven into the wool. We were told to sit down and listen… I remember now that we had gathered for this purpose before… We made a big think circle.. I crossed my legs, as were the rest of my family… Mother spoke of grandfathers and grandmothers who had married and gone on… Both the men and women had been repeating what she’d been telling, in order to Remember it.” Boy Jesus age 7
Excerpt from Christ the Lord by Anne Rice
I copied this in my journal on November 9th. It impacted my soul when I read it. Something deep in me connected with the imagery of a whole family gathering together to share their story, all of it, the good, the bad, and the unspeakable. I have not blogged about it until now; for fear that it would only be a good idea and not a reality for my family. Today I am writing to celebrate that the story has come full circle. Sunday night the Winn family came together in the middle of the living room floor and began to share our struggles and pains as we grow as a family. Each one of us shared from a place that may have been a little awkward at first, but came easier as the night grew. Something special was given space to grow.
In the middle of our time together one of the little girls said with eyes beaming in delight, “this meeting is GREAT! I love our family!” Then the other one said “telling our stories is good because we can all know where we are coming from.” I couldn’t have explained it better myself. My Father in heaven must know the inner desire of my heart to grant us this precious gift. His will is done on Earth as it is in Heaven.
We are reclaiming the formation of the family circle… a place where hearts, fears, and hopes come together in the sacred place of the story of us. By gathering this way, we are entering into a tradition that is as old as the earth itself. By redeeming the practice of remembrance, we are remembering… The Lord has done great things for us! 
3 comments:
i know it's your nature to want to "create" something - you are SO creative... but thank you for letting this naturally happen... not trying to "create" some atmosphere or environment... if you remember, the girls did that on their own... they got the blankets out right when i said we were going to have a family meeting (and they didn't know what you had read!) :) God does know your heart, and He sees our vision for our family... i love you
This is really good.
Darla--it's funny: upon reading Michael's entry, I immediately started planning a way to make this happen at our household. But (thanks to your comment), I will allow the idea to ruminate. I will look for a way to allow this to happen naturally.
Does this mean we have to turn off our TVs? ;) Maybe we could burn them in a bonfire and gather around outside.
Michael, this touched me so hard (as my 16-year-old would say). I've been thinking lately about how my son is almost grown and gone, and how so many nights we pass by as ships in the night - expressing our love, and glad for each other, but not really having soulful conversation. Times before when we really talked deeply we were out together sharing a meal alone. Perhaps for a teenager that would be a very natural atmosphere for a family circle. Thanks so much for this.
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